Friday 22 September 2017

Apple Pie.



Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

Happy first official day of Autumn!

I'm sharing an apple pie recipe with you to celebrate.
But first and more importantly, I survived having two teeth taken out. Guys, that IV sedation is good! Once the injection was in, I vaguely remember the nurse and dentist standing over me and that's it! The next thing I know, I'm sat up in the dentist chair with a few cotton swabs in my mouth and feeling very happy about the whole thing.
It's a strange feeling afterwards. I've tried to remember the actual teeth being taken out but I just can't. The sedative completely relaxed a very nervous me and the whole thing was over in 15 minutes. Even better was the fact that once my actual mouth had woken up a few hours later, it didn't even hurt that much. Probably because they had been able to get the teeth out pretty quick without having to worry about me panicking and getting all distressed. 
Alright, let's talk about this most autumnal of puddings - the apple pie. I have never really been an apple pie fan but guys, this recipe has converted me. Most probably because I used simple ingredients and let them really shine. 
An apple pie is two things - a flaky shortcrust pastry and a brown sugar cinnamon apple filling. Both can be made in advance making this the easiest dessert to make ahead. This pie is perfect for Autumn with its abundance of apples. In fact, the pie can easily use up to 2kg of apples. Which in these parts is most needed with the apples coming in from garden apple trees and the cheap prices on the apples in the supermarket. Get apple pie baking!

A Simple List of Ingredients:

For the Apple Filling:
1. Apples
2. Lemon Juice
3. Butter
4. Soft Light Brown Sugar
5. Ground Cinnamon

For the Shortcrust Pastry:
1. Plain Flour
2. Salt
3. Caster Sugar
4. Butter
5. Ice-Cold Water

To Bake:
1. An Egg
2. Demerara Sugar

Bismillah, let's begin!

Let's start by preparing the apples. I used a total of 2 kg Apples. I prefer using a mixture of both red and green apples.

Included in my 2 kg of apples were also these tiny, sour crab apples that I picked from a tree in the garden.

First job? Peel the apples.

Then, core them by slicing out the bits in the middle.

I evenly peeled and cored the crab apples. A long task but worth it in the end!

Next, divide your apples into two.

Cut half of them into quarters or rough chunks.

And, the other half into roughly 1cm chunks.

Squeeze the Juice of 1 Lemon equally over both batches.

Toss to combine and set aside until needed.


Next, we're going to cook our apples. Grab a large pan and pop it over a medium heat. To it, add 50g Butter.


And, 100g Soft Light Brown Sugar.


Let the two melt together.


Then, take some Ground Cinnamon.


Add as much ground cinnamon as you like. I added in a good pinch here and then threw in some more later on.


Throw in the roughly chopped apples. We're going to let these cook for about 10 minutes over a medium-low heat until the apples are soft but still holding their shape.


The smell at this point in your kitchen will be amazing with the apples bubbling away in the hot cinnamon caramel.


After 10 minutes, add in the cubed apples.


Stir them in!


Let these apples cook for 5 minutes. By cooking them in this way, our apple pie filling will be a mixture of different textures.


At this point, taste the filling. Add more cinnamon or sugar, if needed.


Then, pull the filling off the heat and let it cool completely. I actually left mine overnight in the fridge and it was fine.


Next, let's make our flaky shortcrust pastry. Start by putting 350g Plain Flour, a pinch of Salt and 1 tablespoon Caster Sugar into a food processor.


Add in 250g Butter, cold and cubed.


Cold butter is key to making a really good pastry. I cut up my butter and popped it into the freezer for 15 minutes to get it really cold.


Get the lid on and blend everything until you have a mixture that resembles breadcrumbs.


Then, slowly pour in 100ml Ice-Cold Water and blend at the same time.


Until you have a dough on your hands! You may not need all the water.


Shape the dough into 2 flat rounds, wrap in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour.


I left mine in the fridge overnight and they were just fine!


When you're ready to bake, pre-heat the oven to 190C. Take a 26cm pie dish. I got mine here!


Grab your chilled pastry and apple filling.


Roll out one of the pastry rounds on a floured surface to roughly 3mm thick. 


Fit the pastry into your pie dish making sure some of it is hanging up and over the sides.


Spoon in the apple filling.


Along with a little of the juices that the apples have released.


Gently pat the apples down.


Then, beat 1 Egg.


And, brush over the edges of the pie.


Roll the second piece of pastry to the same thickness and drape it over the top of the apples.


Gently press down the edges and trim the excess pastry off with a sharp knife.


With our leftover pastry, we made this giant cheese, onion and potato pastie.


Press down the edges of the apple pie with a fork to seal.


And, we're nearly ready to bake!


First, let's brush the top of the pie with the beaten egg.


If you're feeling creative, cut out shapes using the leftover pastry and stick them onto the pie.


An apple with leaves!


Brush the shapes with beaten egg as well.


Sprinkle 20g Demerara Sugar over the pie.


Make a cut in the pastry to help the steam escape whilst baking.


Bake the pie at 190C for 50-60 minutes. Put the dish on an oven tray to catch any leaking juices.


Once the pie is golden brown and crisp, it's done. Let the pie cool in the dish for 20 minutes before serving.


When you can take it no longer, it's time to slice the pie.

The question is, what will you serve with your pie? Whipped cream? My personal favourite, vanilla ice cream? Or the family favourite, custard? Obviously custard won this time!

Look at those juicy, cinnamon apples!

As I tasted the slice above, it converted me to both apple pie and custard. The crisp pastry with the sweet, cinnamon apples drowned in Birds Eye custard is a classic combination and perfect for a grey Autumn day.

Plus I have decided that a pie is not a pie without at least one leak on the pie dish. Enjoy!

Apple Pie.

Prep Time: About 1 hour + extra time to chill things.
Bake Time: About 1 hour.
Serves: About 8 people.

Ingredients

For the Apple Filling
2 kg Apples (mixture of green and red)
Juice of 1 Lemon
50g Butter
100g Soft Light Brown Sugar
Ground Cinnamon, to taste

For the Shortcrust Pastry
350g Plain Flour
Pinch of Salt
1 tablespoon Caster Sugar
250g Butter, cubed and cold
100ml Ice-Cold Water (more, if needed)

To Bake
1 Egg, beaten
20g Demerara Sugar

Prepare the apples:
Peel and core the apples. Roughly chop or quarter half of them and slice the other half into 1cm chunks. Squeeze the lemon juice over both bowls of apples.

Cook and cool the apples:
Heat the butter and brown sugar over a medium heat. Once melted, add in the cinnamon. Stir and add in the roughly chopped apples. Cook over a medium-low heat for 10 minutes until the apples are soft but still holding their shape. Then, add in the cubed apples and cook for 5 minutes. Taste and add more cinnamon or sugar, if needed. Remove from the heat and cool completely.

Make and chill the pastry:
Into a food processor, place the plain flour, salt, caster sugar and cold butter (I popped my cubed butter into the freezer for 15 minutes). Blend until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Gradually blend and add the ice-cold water until the mixture comes together into a dough. Shape the dough into 2 flat rounds, wrap in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour or even overnight.

Bake the apple pie:
Pre-heat the oven to 190C. Take a 26cm pie dish. Roll out one of the pastry rounds on a floured surface to roughly 3mm thick. Fit the pastry into your pie dish making sure some of it is hanging up and over the sides. Add in the cold cooked apples along with a little of the juices they have released. Gently pat them down. Brush the edges of the pastry with the beaten egg. Roll the second piece of pastry to the same thickness and drape it over the top of the apples. Gently press down the edges, trim the excess with knife and press the edges down with a fork.

Brush the pie top with the beaten egg. This is optional but if you want to cut leaves or other designs with the extra pastry, cut them and stick them onto your pie now. Brush them with beaten egg too. Sprinkle the top with the demerara sugar. Cut a cross in the top of your pie to let the steam escape. Bake the pie at 190C for 50-60 minutes until golden brown on top. Put the pie dish on a oven tray to catch any leaking juices as the pie bakes.

Serve:
Let the pie cool for 20 minutes before slicing and serving with custard.

Recipe Notes:

{adapted from jamie's comfort food}

Keep me in your duas please, and enjoy your apple pie!

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!


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